In various industries such as those involving agriculture, it is often necessary to circulate relatively large amounts of air through a building to help maintain the interior of the building within a desired temperature range, and to provide adequate ventilation. One such application where ventilation and control of the temperature within a building is extremely important is in connection with poultry houses. Such facilities are typically used to house chickens which are being grown for eventual slaughter or which are being used for egg production. Such facilities are also designed for manipulating the light that enters into the building. Light entering a poultry house may affect a chicken in two ways. Initially, the time frame by which a chicken becomes sexually mature is dependent upon the seasonal cycles the chicken experiences. Further, the psychological well being, and thus the physical development, of the chicken is affected by the quantity and concentration of light it is exposed to. Turkeys or other animals are also commonly kept in such houses, and may be equally as sensitive to light variation.
In a large scale poultry house, typically twenty thousand to twenty-five thousand chickens may be housed at a given time. If a poultry house is not properly ventilated, and the ambient temperature within it not properly controlled, the respiration of the chickens and the waste by-products within the poultry house can quickly give rise to a build up of ammonia and heat within the house which may be physiologically detrimental to the chickens. In extreme cases, such as where adequate ventilation and/or cooling is not provided on hot summer days, significant animal mortality may result. Even if mortality does not result, repeated lapses of proper ventilation and/or cooling can produce significant physiological stress on the chickens that results in inhibited growth, reduced egg production, and/or disease. Further, any concentrated areas of light shining into the poultry house will attract the chickens to that area, resulting in a crowd of chickens. This may be psychologically detrimental to the chickens, which further inhibits their physical development. Any of the above conditions may result in significant financial losses to a poultry farmer.
In cases where the chickens are used for egg production, the sexual development of the chickens is a key aspect for production. Generally, chickens sexually mature during the onset of spring. In this way, nature provides for the eggs to be laid during appropriate climate conditions to ensure the survival of the offspring. Mass production of eggs, however, occurs throughout the year. As a result, poultry farmers seek to manipulate the maturity cycles of the chicken to enable the chickens to produce eggs year around. Manipulation of the maturity cycles is generally achieved through controlling the length of day the chickens experience. Through implementation of a light regulation program within the poultry house, the chicken's body can be manipulated into sensing the arrival of spring, regardless of the actual season. Thus, the chicken's body prepares to lay eggs in the upcoming weeks. This process holds significant financial advantages for poultry farmers.
In either of the above described cases, regulation of the amount of light entering the poultry house is a key element to ensure efficient poultry farming. Traditional poultry houses include a variety of features to ensure proper cooling, ventilation and the like. Such features create the opportunity for light to shine through small gaps where the features are mounted. Further, some features are themselves translucent, enabling a degree of light to pass therethrough and into the poultry house. The light that passes into the poultry house is detrimental to the efficient farming of poultry for the reasons discussed above.
It is therefore desirable in the industry to provide an improved method and apparatus for poultry farming that eliminates the drawbacks resulting from light transmission into a poultry house.